Is this a disorder or a phase for my 2 y.o.??

I'm new to the board, but not new to disorders. My side of the family has psychiatric. issues that go WAY back. My mom was diagnosed bi-polar when she was young, and my brother was diagnosed in elem. school. I do not have those symptoms, but I do have my own anxiety issues. I also had severe PPD when DS#1/difficult child was born. I'm now on 25 mg of Zoloft. Enough background; on to DS#1/difficult child.

I've started noticing some things about him that seem a little odd. He's always been a "spirited" kid, and he seems very much like a typical 2 y.o. in some ways. He can be sweet, or he can be WILD and very silly. Here are some things that I've noticed just in the past few weeks:

-He "claps" his hands over my and husband's cheeks when we lean down to his level.
-He likes to kick/strike our cat and any other smallish animal.
-He throws terrible tantrums, sometimes for unknown reasons, that can take 15 minutes or more to calm him from.
-He's bright; knows ABCs by sight, and knows all 50 states by sight. Can count to 100 and beyond.
-Needs to know what's coming next; needs a tight schedule. (If we veer too much away from one, we can expect a meltdown.)
-Usually gets along with other children and other adults in public. It's a different story at home.
-Needs certain amount of sleep to be able to "cope" the next day. Does not usually regulate (by sleeping in a little more) if he's awake too late the night before.
-Terrified of loud noises (hairdryers, leaf blowers, lawn mowers, etc.) and elevators.
-Refuses to allow medication be applied to scrapes. (I also have to hold him down at the dr's office so that he can be checked.)

Lately, I've been looking everywhere to see if I can tell what disorder he might have, if any. He doesn't seem to fit any disorder "mold."

My question: Should I have him tested since psychiatric. disorders run in the family? Or are these behaviors of a typical 2 year old?

Welcome to the group! One thing that I learned very quickly was to go with my gut. You have drawn a picture that most of the people on here have dealt with but you're really on top of it. I'm not saying there's anything wrong, but if your gut tells you to look into this then do it!

My son was the same way (I used to call him "creepy smart", you know the kid that would look right at someone and tell them the names of the planets - in the right order- and be dwelling in their amazement that an 18 mo. old knew this) and two seconds later have the tantrum from he##.

I have a child who started reading at age 2 and who had a fabulous memory for stuff that little ones could usually care less about. He has a disorder called Hyperlexia, which has some kinship to Autism (in his case it was very high functioning). We saw LOTS of behavioral stuff too--anxiety, tantrums, defiance, high need for routine, needed lots of downtime at home to function, etc.

Obviously we're just parents here so all we can do is point you in the direction of help and not determine what's going on with your little guy. Take a look through the above and see what you think, but I would lean towards getting a thorough assessment on him.

My son was the same way (I used to call him "creepy smart", you know the kid that would look right at someone and tell them the names of the planets - in the right order- and be dwelling in their amazement that an 18 mo. old knew this) and two seconds later have the tantrum from he##.

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LOL, when I walked into my pediatrician's office with a file folder stuffed with difficult child's papers, it was immediately convincing when he pulled out the solar system diagramed correctly, the digestive system diagrammed correctly, maps of obscure little countries drawn from memory, etc. And we won't even talk about the magnet letters strewn all over the house or the words written on every surface he could find.

I would take him to a Developmental Pediatrician. Although he is probably too young to get "labeled", he can get interventions. Sounds like he has red flags for autistic spectrum disorder, high functioning. My son also had a fascination with letters and numbers, tantrums, couldn't transition, had sensory issues, and was just a bit "strange." The stuff he is doing, in my opinion, do not sound like mood disorder issues, at least not by themselves. I'd get him evaluated and keep watching him---diagnoses change. But you can get early interventions that will help him forever. in my opinion you should call your Early Intervention Childhood Center, usually just your school district. You may not know technically what is going on for a long time so it's good to be proactive and start early. MY son is fourteen now and nothing seemed THAT unusual until he hit about fourth grade. Then it became apparent that he was not your "typical" child. I'm glad I'd done the early interventions or he probably wouldn't be functioning at such a high level. Pediatricians told me "you worry too much." If you can, I'd actually contact a neuropsychologist. They are trained to look for disorders and do extensive testing, although NO testing can be 100% accurate, especially for a two year old.

My son is three and sounds very much like your son. My son was recently diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)-not otherwise specified. The not otherwise specified part is not-otherwise-specified and I think it's because he doesn't fit exactly into the diagnosis, but he has enough red flags (sensory issues, transition issues, but very smart, excellent memory) that he gets the diagnosis. In our state, it's a good thing because he's eligible for really great services.

Because of his diagnosis, he'll be receiving wrap-around services, probably about 15 hours per week. He also goes to a pre-school three days a week that will help him with many of these issues and he gets speech and occupational therapy there.

I would definitely have your son evaluated, if you could go to a Child Development Unit at a children's hospital, they should be able to help you or a developmental pediatrician as Midwest Mom suggested. Follow your gut...it seems like you have great instincts!

Hi,
I'm new to this post. I found it because I am starting to suspect there is something more going on with my 3-yr-old son.
Your description sounds alot like mine so I'm wondering if we should get an evaluation as well.
Starting at about 18 months, my son became quite a handful. I have a 6-yr-old daughter who is sweet as can be so everyone kept talking about how different boys and girls are. I believe they are but maybe there is more to his behavior than just being a boy.
He has always been very demanding of attention. My husband stays home with him and is exhausted by the end of the day.
Most of the time he can keep himself occupied, playing and getting into things. This is normal to me. But, especially when tired, he will become extremely defiant when told no or asked/told to do something. He will hit me, not hard, more like a smack, even though told repeatedly and forcefully not to do this. I have to practically wrestle him to brush his teeth because he cannot stand the taste of the toothpaste. He will not take oral medication, we have to try to hide it and are usually not successful because he can tell. For several months, he would scream incessantly in the bathtub while getting a bath. I think he didnt like the smell of the soap. That has finally stopped and I can bathe him quietly now. He can throw terrible tantrums, screaming for over 15 minutes sometimes. He will not look at me when in one of his moods. But when he is happy, he is very loving, funny and very bright.
I, too, have scanned the disorder list looking for something that fits and either I am being overreactive and there isnt anything, or I havent found the one yet, or it is a combination of things that I am not qualified to diagnose.
Since I am new here, I havent scanned all of the posts but this forum seemed like a good place to start.
Does this sound familiar?